Missing Family of 6 Did Genius Things to Survive Their 2-Day Ordeal (VIDEO)

A family of six -- four children and two adults -- went missing over the weekend when they went in their black Jeep to play in the snow in the remote mountains of northwest Nevada. After two days of frantic searching, all six were found alive and well, suffering only from some minor dehydration. It's a true holiday miracle and one anyone who read about the story is relieved to hear. But how did they do it?

The answers are actually very surprising and also separate this story from others like it.

In fact, the father of two of the children is being credited with saving them. James Glanton, 34, insisted that they stay together, which was his first smart move. After their Jeep flipped and they were unable to restart the engine, Glanton and his girlfriend, Christina McIntee, 25, hunkered down with their two children, Evan and Chloe Glanton, as well as and Shelby Fitzpatrick and Tate McIntee, a niece and nephew of McIntee's.

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The children ranged in age from 3 to 10, and it's hard to envision how one would keep children that young calm and in one spot for two whole days, but this family clearly managed it. But that's not all they did.

It was freezing while they were missing. In fact, temperatures on Monday morning were about 21 degrees below zero. So the family, who ran out of food on Monday, heated rocks to stay warm.

Later they burned a tire and said they kept their spirits up by pretending they were camping. Amazing, right? And such a far cry from the horror stories we usually hear. Just a few years ago, one family in a similar situation lost their father when he went to go to try to find help, leaving his wife and two small children alone in the car.

So I guess we all have learned some lessons here. Authorities are crediting the fact that they stayed together for this miraculous outcome. It's pretty amazing and something we should all read and remember should we ever find ourselves in similar circumstances. Stay put, stay together, wait for help, keep warm. It seems so simple, but it saved their lives.